QP Monday: Fundraising, First Nations and care bears

After a two-week break, it’s no wonder QP became raucous at times Monday, with Speaker Geoff Regan interjecting and asking for order.

Following a trying weekend for Tom Mulcair, the newly ousted leader was absent from Monday’s QP.

Interim Conservative Leader Rona Ambrose kicked off QP with a question about Vancouver mother Alison Azer, whose children were abducted by her ex-husband overseas in October.

Ambrose said the four children are kidnapped in Iran and while they’ve been in touch with the RCMP, the family is frustrated with the lack of response from the government. Ambrose asked if Foreign Affairs Minister Stephane Dion would confirm that he will meet with Azer.

In Dion’s absence, parliamentary secretary of consular affairs Omar Alghabra said Dion would be happy to meet with Azer and the government continues to work with consular officials and law enforcement to ensure the children will return home safely.

Dominant topic

Opposition members couldn’t hide their eagerness to blast Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould for attending a high-profile fundraising event attended by Bay Street lawyers who paid $500 a plate to attend.

NDP MP Peter Julian raised the issue and suggested “sunny ways” are clouding over. Julian said after promising to govern differently, we find [the prime minister] has no problem with the minister of justice taking part in a fundraiser for the Liberal Party at $500 a head.

“Fundraising is an activity every member engages in,” said Wilson-Raybould. She said, at the federal level, we do not take donations from corporations, from unions and, “in advance I proactively sought to seek the opinion of ethics commissioner to which there was no conflict.”

But opposition members persisted on the issue.

Conservative MP Blaine Calkins questioned Wilson-Raybould on the same issue and so did Conservative MP Michael Cooper.

“The minister attended a pay-to-play fundraiser in which attendees were invited to pay in return for access to the minister. The Minister of Justice has a duty not only to be independent, but to be perceived as independent, which the minister has clearly compromised,” said Cooper, asking that Wilson-Raybould return the “pay-to-play” cash and stand up and apologize.

Liberal House Leader Dominic Leblanc, coming to Wilson-Raybould’s defence, said, “nobody on this side of the House has gone to prison for illegal fundraising and that’s something, over there, they’re having trouble saying.”

Cooper pressed on, and asked the minister release the names of attendees at the fundraiser.

Leblanc said the member knows full well that all of the donations are disclosed online, “so the member can spend the whole evening searching the Internet.”

“Good news, it is coming to a computer near him,” said Leblanc.

After a final exchange on the topic between Conservative MP Jacques Gourde and Wilson-Raybould, NDP MP Romeo Saganash said, “Let’s go from Bay Street to Attawapiskit.” Saganash asked what the government is doing to help the First Nations community where 11 individuals attempted suicide over the weekend.

Health Minister Jane Philpott thanked Saganash for changing the topic in the House. Philpott said she is devastated by the situation that is taking place in Attawapiskat.

“I had a conversation with National Chief Bellegarde yesterday. I spoke today with Chief Shisheesh from Attawapiskat. We now have five new mental health workers in the community. We are responding to both the immediate needs and long-term needs of this community,” said Philpott.

Line of the day

While asking about employment insurance for people in southern Saskatchewan, Conservative MP Andrew Scheer said “The minister’s budget speech was full of flowery imagery, where the sun shines, the wind blows, and the unicorns roam happy and free. The touchy-feely words and Care Bear stares will not create jobs.”